In 1912 The Nation reported that a telegram “of great historical importance” had been put up for auction (N.B.: the Twenty-First Century equivalent of a “telegram” is a text message). The telegram was addressed to General William Techumseh Sherman and signed by General U.S. Grant and it clearly gives Sherman free reign to ravage the countryside as he marched.
“Now, the significance of this is that Gen. Sherman’s commander deliberately ordered that policy of laying waste the country which Gen. Sherman followed in his march. For this policy of ruining the territory in which he operated, Gen. Sherman has ever since been severely criticized …”
Click here to read the chronologies of the American Civil War.
To read the story behind Lincoln’s beard, click here.
More about the American Civil War can be read here
KEY WORDS: Plunder in the Civil War,Telegrams of General Ulysses S Grant,Telegrams of Civil War General William Techumseh Sherman,General Grant and His Generals in the American Civil War,General Grant and Shermans March to the Sea During the American Civil War,Burning Farms During the American Civil War,Telegraphs of the American Civil War,General WT Sherman March Through Atlanta